Topic outline
-
-
The following is adapted from the iThenticate FAQ page and has been added to as UniSA users have provided feedback.
What do iThenticate reports highlight?
iThenticate identifies material that matches text from documents found in our extensive database. Highlighted text will include text that has been properly quoted and cited so it is not necessarily plagiarized. You will need to verify that every highlighted section has been properly quoted, summarized or paraphrased. As a result, iThenticate makes it easier for you to identify and attribute any material in that may contain unintentional plagiarism.
How long will I have to wait until my results are ready?
Results are usually delivered within one minute to several minutes, depending on document length.
How will I know if my results are ready?
While this analysis is in progress, you will see the word "pending" in the report column next to the title of your manuscript. When your results are ready, you will see a percentage, or "Similarity Index" in the report column next to the title of your manuscript.
How do I see my results?
To see your results, click the "Similarity Report" icon in the report column next to the title of your manuscript.
What does the percentage mean?
The results include a percentage score, called a "Similarity Index", which indicates how much of the document matches other sources. Please note that iThenticate does not determine whether a manuscript contains plagiarism. The service identifies content in a submitted manuscript that matches other sources, primarily to encourage the author of the manuscript to check that other sources have been properly cited. Watch a demo here.
It is important to remember that almost all pieces of writing will have a similarity score of some sort. The key thing is to look at elements of your writing that iThenticate identifies as matching another source and ensuring that you have referenced or attributed those words correctly. iThenticate's role is as an educative tool to help you develop your own voice and to develop a style which is academically robust and ethical.
What do the highlighted boxes mean?
The results include number-coded and color-coded highlighting of parts of the manuscript that correspond to matching sources in the iThenticate database. You are encouraged to look carefully at these portions to determine whether other sources have been properly cited.
A non-problematic example
The following is an example of a section of a paper which iThenticate identified as potentially coming from an internet source (www.chelt.anu.edu.au) which iThenticate had 'crawled' on 7 Sept 2014. This source refers to a set of conference proceedings.
This similarity identification is not problematic because the identified words are either generic to the topic of the research ('research degrees') or identified as quotations.
However, had there not been any quotation marks, this section would have been problematic and in need of attention.
-
Interpreting an iThenticate report and using it to improve research writing
In the following video in which she is talking to an audience of supervisors, Monica talks about how to interpret the results of some real iThenticate reports and also about some ways of using the system to help improve and develop research writing.
-